Skip to main content
Log in

Child sexual abuse and pornography: Is there a relationship?

Journal of Family Violence Aims and scope Submit manuscript

Abstract

Sexual abuse is now a major form of child maltreatment; however, the causes of such exploitation are obscure. A review of official reports and other research indicate that the circumstances surrounding sexual abuse are inadequately specified to allow specific causal interpretations. The role of pornography in contributing to such abuse is explored by reviewing laboratory studies and the circumstances of child sexual abuse. An assessment of the research literature suggests that pornography is a minor and indirect influence on child sexual maltreatment.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this article

Price excludes VAT (USA)
Tax calculation will be finalised during checkout.

Instant access to the full article PDF.

Institutional subscriptions

References

  • Abramson, D. J., Barlow, D. H., Beck, J. G., Sakheim, D. K., and Kelly, J. P. (1985). The effects of attention focus and partner responsiveness on sexual responding: Replication and extension.Arch. Sex. Behav. 14: 361–371.

    PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Aha. American Humane Association (1987).Highlights of Official Child Neglect and Abuse Reporting, 1985, The American Humane Association, Denver, Colo.

    Google Scholar 

  • Allen, G., Gaylor, A. L., Gordon, S., Kirkendall, L., and Kocol, C. (1985). Pornography: A humanist issue.Humanist 45: 23–31, 84.

    Google Scholar 

  • Anson, R. S. (1980). The last porno show. In Schultz L. G. (ed.),The Sexual Victimology of Youth, Charles C. Thomas, Springfield, Ill.

    Google Scholar 

  • Bandura, A. (1977).Social Learning Theory, Prentice-Hall, Englewood Cliffs, N.J.

    Google Scholar 

  • Bandura, A. (1978). The self system in reciprocal determinism.American Psychologist 33: 344–358.

    Google Scholar 

  • Bandura, A. (1984). Representing personal determinants in causal structures.Psychological Rev. 91: 508–511.

    Google Scholar 

  • Briere, J., Malamuth, N., and Cheek, V. P. (1985). Sexuality and rape-supported beliefs.Int. J. Wom. Studies 8: 398–403.

    Google Scholar 

  • Brown, S. Z. (1982). Supreme Court review: First amendment —Nonobscene child pornography and its categorical exclusion from constitutional protection.J. Crim. Law Criminal. 73: 1337–1364.

    Google Scholar 

  • Browne, A., and Finkelhor, D. (1986). Initial and long-term effects: A review of the research. In Finkelhor, D. (ed.),A Sourcebook on Child Sexual Abuse, Sage, Beverly Hills.

    Google Scholar 

  • Burgess, A. W., Hartman, C. R., McCausland, M. P., and Powers, P. (1984). Response patterns in children and adolescents exploited through sex rings and pornography.Am. J. Psychiatr. 141: 656–652.

    PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Byrne, D. (1977). The imagery of sex. In Money, J., and Masoph, H. (eds.),Handbook of Sexology, Excerpta Medica, Amsterdam.

    Google Scholar 

  • Byrne, D., and Lamberth, J. (1971). The effect of erotic stimulation on sex arousal, evaluative responses and subsequent behavior. InTechnical Report of the Commission on Obscenity and Pornography (Vol.8), Washington, D.C., pp. 41–67.

    Google Scholar 

  • Campagna, D. S., and Poffenberger, D. L. (1988).The Sexual Trafficking in Children: An Investigation of the Child Sex Trade, Auburn House, Dover, Mass.

    Google Scholar 

  • Chandler, S. M. (1982). Knowns and unknowns in sexual abuse of children.J. Social Work Hum. Sexual. (Fall/Winter): 51–68.

  • Cheek, J. V. P., and Malamuth, N. M. (1984). Can there be positive effects of participation in pornography experiments?J. Sex Res. 20: 14–31.

    Google Scholar 

  • Cheek, J. V. P., and Malamuth, N. M. (1985). An empirical assessment of some feminist hypotheses about rape.Int. J. Wom. Studies 8: 414–423.

    Google Scholar 

  • Commission: Attorney General's Commission on Pornography (1986).Final Report (July), U.S. Department of Justice, Washington, D.C.

    Google Scholar 

  • Conte, J. R., and Berliner, L. (1981). Sexual abuse of children: Implications for practice.Social Casework 62: 601–606.

    Google Scholar 

  • Court, J. H. (1984). Sex and violence: A ripple effect. In Malamuth N. M., and Donnerstein, E. (eds.),Pornography and Aggression, Academic Press, Orlando, Fla.

    Google Scholar 

  • De Jong, A. R., Hervada, A. R., and Emmett, G. A. (1983). Epidemiologic variations in childhood sexual abuse.Child Abuse Negl. 7: 155–162.

    PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Densen-Gerber, J. (1977). What pornographers are doing to children: A shocking report.Redbook Magazine (August).

  • deYoung, M. (1986). ‘The Cloak of Innocence’: The concept of participant victim in the child sexual abuse literature.Sexual Coercion Assault 1: 189–195.

    Google Scholar 

  • deYoung, M. (1987). Child sexual abuse as social gospel. Paper presented at North Central Sociological Association Annual Meetings, Cincinnati, Ohio.

  • Ditkoff, M. (1978). Child pornography.American Humane Association Magazine 16: 30.

    Google Scholar 

  • Donnerstein, E. (1980). Aggressive-erotica and violence against women.J. Personal. Social Psychol. 39: 269–277.

    Google Scholar 

  • Donnerstein, E. (1984). Pornography: Its effect on violence against women. In Malamuth, N. H., and Donnerstein, E. (eds.),Pornography and Sexual Aggression, Academic Press, Orlando, Fla.

    Google Scholar 

  • Donnerstein, E. (1986). The pornography commission report: Do findings fit conclusions?Sexual Coercion and Assault 1: 185–188.

    Google Scholar 

  • Donnerstein, E., and Berkowitz, L. (1982). Victim reactions in aggressive erotic films as a factor in violence against women.J. Personal. Social Psychol. 41: 710–724.

    Google Scholar 

  • Donnerstein, E., and Linz, D. (1986). Mass media sexual violence and male viewers.Am. Behav. Scientist 29: 601–618.

    Google Scholar 

  • Elwell, M. E. (1979). Sexually assaulted children and their families.Social Casework 6: 227–235.

    Google Scholar 

  • Eysenck, H. J. (1972). Obscenity—Officially speaking.Penthouse 3: 95–102.

    Google Scholar 

  • Eysenck, H. J. (1984). Sex, violence, and the media: Where do we stand now? In Malamuth, N. H., and Donnerstein, E. (eds.),Pornography and Sexual Aggression, Academic Press, Orlando, Fla.

    Google Scholar 

  • Eysenck, H. J., and Nias, D. K. B. (1979).Sex, Violence and the Media, Harper and Row, New York.

    Google Scholar 

  • Fehrenbach, P. A., Smith, W., Monastersky, C., and Deisher, R. W. (1986). Adolescent sexual offenders: Offender and offense characteristics.Am. J. Orthopsychiat. 56: 225–233.

    PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Feldman-Summers, S. (1986). A comment on the Meese Commission Report and the dangers of censorship.Sexual Coercion Assault 1(No. 6): 179–184.

    Google Scholar 

  • Finkelhor, D., and Baron, L. (1986). High-risk children. In Finkelhor, D. (ed.),A Sourcebook on Child Sexual Abuse, Sage, Beverly Hills.

    Google Scholar 

  • Fisher, W. A., and Byrne, D. (1978). Sex differences in response to erotica? Love versus lust.J. Personal. Social Psychol. 117–125.

  • Fritz, N. J., and Altheide, D. L. (1988). The mass media and the social construction of the missing children problem.Sociological Quart. 28(Winter): 473–492.

    Google Scholar 

  • Garcia, L. T., Brennan, T. K., DeCarlo, M., McGlennon, R., and Tait, S. (1984). Sex differences in sexual arousal to different erotic stories.J. Sex Res. 20: 391–402.

    Google Scholar 

  • Geiser, R. L. (1979).Hidden Victims: The Sexual Abuse of Children, Beacon Press, Boston, Mass.

    Google Scholar 

  • George, R. L. (1979). The effects of alcohol and anger interent in violence, erotica, and deviance.J. Abnorm. Psychol. 95: 150–158.

    Google Scholar 

  • Giglio, E. (1985). Pornography in Denmark: A public policy model for the United States?Comp. Social Res. 8: 520–528.

    Google Scholar 

  • Goldstein, M. J., Kant, H. S., and Hartman, J. J. (1973).Pornography and Sexual Deviance, University of California Press, Berkeley.

    Google Scholar 

  • Gray, S. H. (1982). Exposure to pornography and aggression toward women: The case of the angry male.Social Probl. 29: 387–398.

    Google Scholar 

  • Green, S. E., and Mosher, D. L. (1985). A causal modei of sexual arousal to erotic fantasies.J. Sex Res. 21: 1–23.

    Google Scholar 

  • Griffitt, W. (1975). Sexual experience and sexual responsiveness: Sex differences.Arch. Sexual Behav. 4: 529–540.

    Google Scholar 

  • Groff, M. G., and Hubble, L. M. (1984). A comparison of father-daughter and stepfather-stepdaughter incest.Crim. Just. Behav. 11: 461–475.

    Google Scholar 

  • Gruber, K. J., and Jones, J. (1983). Identifying determinants of risk of sexual victimization of youth: A multivariate approach.Child Abuse Negl. 7: 17–24.

    PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Hatfield, E., Sprecher, S., and Traupmann, J. (1978). Men's and women's reactions to sexually explicit films: A serendipitous finding.Arch. Sex. Behav. 7(No. 4): 583–592.

    PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Herrell, J. M. (1975). Sex differences in emotional responses to ‘Erotic Literature.’J. Consult. Clin. Psychol. 43: 921.

    PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Herrmann, K. J., and Jupp, M. J. (1985). Commercial child pornography and pedophile organizations: An International Report.Response 8(No. 2, Spring): 7–10.

    Google Scholar 

  • Holmes, R. M. (1984). Children in pornography.Police Chief 51: 42–43.

    Google Scholar 

  • Julian, V., and Mohr, C. (1979). Father-daughter incest: Profile of the offender.Victimol. Int. J. 4: 348–360.

    Google Scholar 

  • Kelley, K. (1985). Sex, sex guilt, and authoritarianism: Differences in responses to explicit heterosexual and masturbatory slides.J. Sex Res. 21: 68–85.

    Google Scholar 

  • Kempe, C. H., Silverman, F. N., Steele, B. F., Droegemueller, W., and Silver, H. K. (1962). The battered child syndrome.J. Am. Med. Assoc. 181: 17–24.

    Google Scholar 

  • Kolenda, K. (1985). Philosopher's column: Porno prone.Humanist 45: 45.

    Google Scholar 

  • Kronhausen, E., and Kronhausen, P. (1959).Pornography and the Law, Ballantine Books, New York.

    Google Scholar 

  • Kurti, L. (1983). Dirty movies-dirty minds: The social construction of x-rated films.J. Pop. Cult. 17: 187–192.

    Google Scholar 

  • Kutchinsky, B. (1973). The effect of easy availability of pornography on the incidence of sex crimes: The Danish experience.J. Social Issues 29: 163–181.

    Google Scholar 

  • Kutchinsky, B. (1978). Pornography in Denmark — A general survey. In Ohavan, R., and Davies, C. (eds),Censorship and Obscenity, Rowman and Littlefield, Totowa, N.J.

    Google Scholar 

  • Kutchinsky, B. (1983). Obscenity and pronography: 1. Behavioral aspects.Encyclopedia of Crime and Justice, Volume 3, The Free Press, New York, pp. 1077–1086.

    Google Scholar 

  • Kutchinsky, B. (1985). Pornography and its effects in Denmark and the United States: A rejoinder and beyond.Comp. Social Res. 8: 301–330.

    Google Scholar 

  • Linz, D., Donnerstein, E., and Penrod, S. (1987). The findings and recommendations of the Attorney General's Commission on pornography: Do the psychological “facts” fit the political fury?Am. Psychologist 42: 946–953.

    Google Scholar 

  • Malamuth, N. M. (1984). Aggression against women: Cultural and individual causes. In Malamuth, N. M., and Donnerstein, E. (eds.),Pornography and Sexual Aggression, Academic Press, Orlando, Fla.

    Google Scholar 

  • Malamuth, N. M. (1986). Predictors of naturalistic sexual aggression.J. Personal. Social Psychol. 50: 953–962.

    Google Scholar 

  • Malamuth, N. M., and Billings, V. (1984). Why pornography? Models of functions and effects.J. Commun. 34: 117–129.

    Google Scholar 

  • Malamuth, N. M., and Cheek, J. V. P. (1980). Sexual arousal to rape and consenting depictions: The importance of woman's arousal.J. Abnormal Psychol. 89: 763–766.

    Google Scholar 

  • Malamuth, N. M., and Cheek, J. V. P. (1982). The effects of mass media exposure on acceptance of violence against women: A field experiment.J. Res. Personal. 15: 436–446.

    Google Scholar 

  • Malamuth, N. M., and Cheek, J. V. P. (1985). The effects of aggressive pornography on beliefs in rape myths: Individual differences.J. Res. Personal. 19: 229–320.

    Google Scholar 

  • Malamuth, N. M., Cheek, J. V. P. and Briere, J. (1986). Sexual arousal in response to aggression: Ideological, aggressive, and sexual correlates.J. Personal. Social Psychol. 50: 330–334.

    Google Scholar 

  • Malamuth, N. M., and Spinner, B. (1980). A longitudinal content analysis of sexual violence in best-selling erotic magazines.J. Sex Res. 16: 226–237.

    Google Scholar 

  • Mannarino, A. P., and Cohen, J. A. (1986). A clinical demographic study of sexually abused children.Child Abuse Neglect 10(No. 1): 17–24.

    PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Marshall, W. L., Barbaree, H. E., and Christophe, D. (1986). Sexual offenders against female children: Sexual preference for age of victims and type of behavior.Canad. J. Behav. Sci. 18(No. 4): 424–439.

    Google Scholar 

  • McCormack, A., Janus, M. D., and Burgess, A. W. (1986). Runaway youths and sexual victimization: Gender differences in an adolescent runaway population.Child Abuse Neglect 10: 387–395.

    PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Mosher, D. L., and Abramson, P. R. (1977). Subjective sexual arousal to films of masturbation.J. Consult. Clin. Psychol. 45: 796–807.

    Google Scholar 

  • Mosher, D. L., and O'Grady, K. E. (1979). Sex guilt, trait anxiety, and female's subjective sexual arousal to erotica.Motiv. Emotion 3: 235–249.

    Google Scholar 

  • Nelson, E. C. (1982). Pornography and sexual aggression. In Yaffe, M., and Nelson, E. C. (eds.),The Influence of Pornography on Behavior, Academic Press, London.

    Google Scholar 

  • Nobile, P., and Nadler, E. (1986).United States of America vs Sex: How the Meese Commission Lied About Pornography, Minotaur Press, New York.

    Google Scholar 

  • O'Brien, S. (1983).Child Pornography, Kendall-Hunt, Dubuque, Iowa.

    Google Scholar 

  • Parker, H., and Parker, S. (1986). Father-daughter sexual abuse: An emerging perspective.Am. J. Orthopsychiat. 56: 531–549.

    PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Pawlowski, W. (1979). Response to sexual films as a function of anxiety level.Psychological Rep. 44: 1067–1073.

    Google Scholar 

  • Penrod, S., and Linz, D. (1984). Using psychological research on violent pornography to inform legal change. In Malamuth, N. M., and Donnerstein, E. (eds.),Pornography and Sexual Aggression, Academic Press, Orlando, Fla.

    Google Scholar 

  • Peters, S. D., Wyatt, G. E., and Finkelhor, D. (1986). Prevalence. In Finkelhor, D. (ed.),A Sourcebook on Child Sexual Abuse, Sage, Beverly Hills.

    Google Scholar 

  • Phelan, P. (1986). The process of incest: Biologic father and stepfather families.Child Abuse Negl. 10: 531–539.

    PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Pickard, C. (1982). A perspective on female responses to sexual material. In Yaffe, M., and Nelson, E. C. (eds.),The Influence of Pornography on Behavior, Academic Press, London.

    Google Scholar 

  • Pierce, R. L. (1984). Child pornography: A hidden dimension of child abuse.Child Abuse Neg. 8: 483–493.

    Google Scholar 

  • Pierce, R., and Pierce, L. H. (1985). The sexually abused child: A comparison of male and female victims.Child Abuse Negl. 9: 191–199.

    PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Rook, L. E., and Hammen, C. L. (1977). A cognitive perspective on the experience of sexual arousal.J. Social Issues 33: 7–30.

    Google Scholar 

  • Rush, F. (1980). Child pornography. In Lederer, L. (ed.),Take Back the Night, Morrow, New York.

    Google Scholar 

  • Russell, D. E. H. (1981). Censorship issue is muting the feminists' attacks on pornography.Center Magazine 14: 42–43.

    Google Scholar 

  • Russell, D. E. H. (1983). The incidence and prevalence of intrafamilial and extrafamilial sexual abuse of female children.Child Abuse Negl. 9: 191–199.

    Google Scholar 

  • Schneider, P. (1986). Lost innocents: The myth of missing children.Harpers 274(February): 47–53.

    Google Scholar 

  • Silbert, M. H., and Pines, A. M. (1984a). Early sexual exploitation as an influence in prostitution.Social Work 28: 285–289.

    Google Scholar 

  • Silbert, M. H., and Pines, A. M. (1984b). Pornography and sexual abuse of women.Sex Roles 10: 857–868.

    Google Scholar 

  • Soble, A. (1985). Pornography: Defamation and the endorsement of degradation.Social Theory Pract. 11: 61–87.

    Google Scholar 

  • Steinman, D. L., Wincze, J. P., Sakheim, B. A., Barlow, D. H., and Mavissakalian, M. (1981). A comparison of male and female patterns of sexual arousal.Arch. Sex. Behav. 10: 529–547.

    PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Toolin, C. (1983). Attitudes toward pornography: What have the feminists missed?J. Pop. Cult. 17: 167–174.

    Google Scholar 

  • Tong, R. (1982). Feminism, pornography and censorship.Social Theory Pract. 8: 1–7.

    Google Scholar 

  • Tyler, R. P. and Stone, L. E. (1985). Child pornography: Perpetuating the sexual victimization of children.Child Abuse Negl. 9: 313–318.

    PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • USHHS. U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (1980).National Analysis of Official Child Neglect and Abuse Reporting (1978), National Center on Child Abuse and Neglect, Washington, D.C.

  • Webb, P. (1982). Erotic art and pornography. In Yaffe, M., and Nelson, E. C. (eds.),The Influence of Pornography on Behavior, Academic Press, New York.

    Google Scholar 

  • Zillman, D. J., Hayt, L., and Day, K. D. (1974). Strength and duration of the effect of aggressive, violent and erotic communication on subsequent aggression.Commun. Res. 1: 286–306.

    Google Scholar 

  • Zillman, D., and Bryant, J. (1982). Pornography, sexual callousness, and the trivialization of rape.J. Commun. 32: 10–20.

    PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Zillman, D., and Bryant, J. (1984). Effects of massive exposure to pornography. In Malamuth, N. M., and Donnerstein, E. (eds.),Pornography and Sexual Aggression, Academic Press, Orlando, Fla. pp. 115–138.

    Google Scholar 

  • Zillman, D., and Sapolsky, B. S. (1977). What mediates the effect of mild erotica on annoyance and hostile behavior in males?J. Personal. Social Psychol. 35: 587–596.

    Google Scholar 

Download references

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

Authors

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

About this article

Cite this article

Knudsen, D.D. Child sexual abuse and pornography: Is there a relationship?. J Fam Viol 3, 253–267 (1988). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00989976

Download citation

  • Issue Date:

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00989976

Key words

Navigation